OUTING.

OUTING.VOL. XIII.FEBRUARY, 1889.NO. 5.

VOL. XIII.FEBRUARY, 1889.NO. 5.

Headpiece: SLEIGHING

BY WILL H. WHYTE.

HHARK to the sleigh-bells—how they charm the earWith crystal music exquisitely clear!Watch the light sleighs, how merrily they goO’er firm new roads macadamized with snow!The skies are blue, the sunbeams, as they play,Eclipse the splendors of a summer day,And rubies, sapphires, emeralds, diamonds blaze,Beneath each horse’s footfall, with prismatic rays.G. Murray.

HARK to the sleigh-bells—how they charm the ear

With crystal music exquisitely clear!

Watch the light sleighs, how merrily they go

O’er firm new roads macadamized with snow!

The skies are blue, the sunbeams, as they play,

Eclipse the splendors of a summer day,

And rubies, sapphires, emeralds, diamonds blaze,

Beneath each horse’s footfall, with prismatic rays.

G. Murray.

WHENold Winter, the king of the Arctic Circle, issues from his polar domain for his annual visit to southern latitudes, accompanied by his stalwart henchman Jack Frost, he binds tight with icy chains the great rivers and lakes, and even the mighty St. Lawrence bows to and acknowledges his power. Then the country and roads lie deep beneath the snow-king’s mantle, and man, who cannot hibernate like the bears, adopts a mode of locomotion different from those he uses in the long days of summer. The noisy wheel he replaces with the silent runner.

In all northern countries, where the snow covers the ground to any depth, the inhabitants use some kind of sleigh or sled to enable them to travel during the winter. In the Arctic zone the Laplanders and Esquimaux traverse their ice-bound land in low but comfortable sledges drawn by reindeer or dogs. Around the shores of Hudson’s Bay, and in sections north of Lake Superior, where the iron horse has not yet made his appearance, the winter vehicle in use is the “traineau,” drawn by a team of dogs. In Manitoba and the Canadian Northwest, until its annexation and settlement some years ago by the Dominion, this was the sole means of communication in winter between many of the scattered settlements; and even now, in the far north, the mails are so conveyed. In these days of high pressure, time is an object, and few would care to spend fourteen days in a sleigh when fourteen hours by rail would bring one to his destination. There are, however, yet living, old travelers who could many a tale unfold of tragic adventure over frozen field and flood—some even thrilling enough to stir the blood of the reader of sensational novels.

In those early days, when for four months in the year the sleigh afforded the only means of transportation, it was not regarded as a sport or pastime. The highways followed the windings and indentations of the lakes and rivers, and were frequently blocked with heavy snowdrifts. The ice made a shorter and more level path, and was consequently preferred as soon as it was strong enough to bear the weight of a horse and sleigh, so affording, during the colder months, a pleasant road. But toward the spring of the year, when the returning power of the sun honey-combed the ice, it made a dangerous track, and many a sleigh with its living freight has disappeared beneath the treacherous ice. Even without such tragic incidents, excitement would often be afforded by the loss of horses and sleigh, and a weary, perilsome walk to the nearest village or settlement. In those days no one thought of leaving home without his rifle, for in wood and bush lurked the ravenous wolf, and, still more to be dreaded, the Indian of those days. Happily this has all passed away, and the present generation travels by steam in comfortable cars, and the traveler has no fear of being brained by a tomahawk or losing his scalp. His sleigh-riding is limited to perhaps the next town or village, and usually combines pleasure with business.

In Dakota, Minnesota, and other northwestern States, and in Manitoba, during the months of February and March, when that American product, the “blizzard,” is on the trail, sleighing at any distance from civilization is somewhat perilous. We have a vivid recollection of a sleigh drive in the province of Manitoba, when for twenty miles we never saw the horse that was drawing our sleigh. With fearful velocity the blizzard overtook us, and in an instant the air was filled with a whirlwind of snow. Covering our faces, we left our “shaginappi” pony to follow the trail as best he could, trusting that somehow the sagacious animal would find his way to some house or settlement. After many weary hours, when hope was almost expiring, benumbed and nearly exhausted, just as the shadows of night were closing in around us, our steed suddenly drew up in front of a house, and the most gladsome sight we ever beheld was the light in the window of that little shanty. A warm, comfortable room and something to eat soon thawed us out, and after seeing that our four-footed friend was well housed, we were soon sound asleep, fagged out with our tussle. Never since have we yearned for a similar experience.

In lumbering, that great industry of Maine, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Canada, the sleigh and sled plays a very important part. When frost makes the swamps firm and snow levels the ground, the lumber-camp is in all its activity. The vast forest trees are cut and then easily drawn on sleds to the nearest lake or river, whence in spring they are floated to market.

Ever since the days when the “lily flag” of the Bourbons floated over “La Nouvelle France,” ice-trotting has been a Canadian winter pastime on the great St. Lawrence River, either at Quebec, Three Rivers or Montreal. In fact, in any of the inland villages, wherever a stretch of ice can be found, may be seen the French Canadian, seated on a sleigh after the style of a skeleton-sulky, no matter how cold or stormy it may be. He is happy if he can show the good points of his trotter in a race with a neighbor before an admiring audience of countrymen, and when not racing he will spend hours speeding his horse over the glassy track. The Canadian horse is hardy for his size and weight, unsurpassed for pluck and endurance, and usually possesses good action and temper. Many are descendants of Norman stock. Ice-trotting has always been a favorite sport at Montreal, and many of the trotters of the present day are descended from horses that have been used in this sport. Among those that made a name for themselves on the ice forty years ago was the well-known St. Lawrence.

In Canada sleighing has attained the greatest pre-eminence as a pastime, and perhaps in the whole Dominion it is nowhere so popular as in the ancient province of Quebec. Here the climate is absolutely unsurpassed for the thorough enjoyment of outdoor sports. When winter once sets in a thaw rarely occurs, with the exceptionof one in January, which seldom lasts longer than two or three days. Jack Frost is the ruler of the weather. Consequently, though the air may be cold, it is clear and dry and enjoyable, the roads hard and smooth, the runners glide easily and quietly, while the bells jingle merrily. All who can afford it keep some kind of a sleigh and horse, while the livery-stables in the larger towns do a thriving and profitable business. The country and city roads present a gay appearance. Every variety of turn-out is there, from the home-made “cariole” and French-Canadian pony of thehabitant, to the handsome sleigh and team of the millionaire. What a revelation would a procession of all the styles of sleigh that have been in vogue since the settlement of the province afford! Or even those of the present century. There would be the little market-box, or “Berlin;” the ancient but still fashionable “cariole,” on runners so low that a chance upset does not present much danger; the trotting-sulky; the light but dashing cutter, a style more in vogue over the border than in Quebec, and dozens of fashionable equipages mounted on single or double runners and furnished with a wealth of furs that would make a Russian prince envious.

A MODERN TANDEM SLEIGH.

Montreal stands unsurpassed for winter vehicles. St. Petersburg, the Russian capital, can perhaps compete in furs, but the Canadian metropolis is unsurpassed in the beauty and variety of its sleighs. Nor can the pleasure of sleighing be enjoyed to greater perfection than in the “Royal City.” The clear, bracing atmosphere gives color to the faces of the fair occupants of the sleighs; the merry music of the bells, and the sound of the runners over the crisp and frozen snow, all lend a charm to the sport, and furnish a tonic finer and far more exhilarating than anything physicians can prescribe. Even the horses seem to trot with a full instinct of enjoyment.

What is more glorious or inspiring than a drive on a beautiful clear Canadian winter’s evening? The night is glorious; possibly there is not even a breath of wind to stir the mass of snow that covers the fields. The stars twinkle and sparkle in the blue sky; the moon transforms the snowy piles into heaps of sparkling diamonds and sketches in exquisite tracery the outlines of trees and leafless branches upon the virgin carpet beneath. The solemn stillness is only broken by the melodious chimes of the sleigh-bells and the patter of the horses’ hoofs upon the frozen crystals.

If on such a night, with some fair companion at your side, you are not moved to an appreciation of the beautiful in nature, then there is no romance in your composition. If at such a time you cannot throw off the petty cares and trials of the busy world, then, my friend, you are past cure. How the jingle of a sleigh-bell will recall memories of former drives! What visions will loom up of glorious nights, with a charming companion carefully wrapped up in warm and cozy robes! How easily did the sleigh slip along behind the pair of Canadian ponies, or how gayly that chestnut or bay would step out without requiring all the attention of the driver; for wheneyes are sparkling in the moonlight, and cheeks glowing ruddy in the crisp and frosty air, it is remarkable what a tendency sleigh robes have to require one’s constant attention! Under such circumstances a horse that does not require all your care is a treasure, for you have plenty of occupation for your left arm keeping the sleigh robes in their proper place, you know. Ah! those glorious sleigh rides around Mount Royal. What can be compared to them, and what an auxiliary they have been to that little god Cupid, many and many a time!

Let poets idly dream and singThe beauty of the windy spring,And in green fields go Maying:Better by far is a winter night,When snow lies deep and hard and white,And the stars look down with twinkling lightOn Nan and me out sleighing.The moonlight makes a fairer day—The restless horses seem to say,“Oh, why are you delaying?”They spurn the ground with flying feet,The sleigh-bells tinkle clear and sweet—Life has never a joy to beatNannie’s and mine out sleighing!My love then nestles near my arm,Among the furs so soft and warm,And I, my heart obeying,Bend down to see her beaming eyes,Bend down to catch her loving sighs,And oh! the time too swiftly flies,When Nannie and I are sleighing!Montreal Star.

Let poets idly dream and sing

The beauty of the windy spring,

And in green fields go Maying:

Better by far is a winter night,

When snow lies deep and hard and white,

And the stars look down with twinkling light

On Nan and me out sleighing.

The moonlight makes a fairer day—The restless horses seem to say,“Oh, why are you delaying?”They spurn the ground with flying feet,The sleigh-bells tinkle clear and sweet—Life has never a joy to beatNannie’s and mine out sleighing!

The moonlight makes a fairer day—

The restless horses seem to say,

“Oh, why are you delaying?”

They spurn the ground with flying feet,

The sleigh-bells tinkle clear and sweet—

Life has never a joy to beat

Nannie’s and mine out sleighing!

My love then nestles near my arm,Among the furs so soft and warm,And I, my heart obeying,Bend down to see her beaming eyes,Bend down to catch her loving sighs,And oh! the time too swiftly flies,When Nannie and I are sleighing!

My love then nestles near my arm,

Among the furs so soft and warm,

And I, my heart obeying,

Bend down to see her beaming eyes,

Bend down to catch her loving sighs,

And oh! the time too swiftly flies,

When Nannie and I are sleighing!

Montreal Star.

Sleigh parties to many of the neighboring villages around Montreal have long been a fashionable recreation. Large sleighs, that will hold thirty or forty each, convey the party to some village hotel, and there, in the ballroom, which is invariably a part of the establishment, a merry and pleasant time is spent.

In the larger cities of Canada there have existed for many years driving clubs. These possess a greater or less degree of organization, and are in operation only during the winter months. Montreal, Quebec, Halifax and Kingston have all had their “tandem clubs.” Montreal and Quebec have probably older organizations than the others. Since they all were garrison towns, during the occupancy of the Imperial troops the officers of the various regiments were among the chief factors in keeping alive these clubs. Quebec’s Tandem Club is said to have been in existence at a time which the memory of the oldest inhabitant reacheth not. One of its oldest presidents is still living, and years ago drove four thoroughbreds of his own breeding. A number of Quebec’s well-known and wealthy merchants have been presidents of the club, and with Lord Alexander Russell and the Earl of Caledon have frequently driven four-in-hand around the streets of the ancient capital. The value, it is said, of some of their magnificent outfits—sleighs, horses and robes—often exceeded $5,000. In the days of the military, the club usually consisted of five or six four-in-hands and thirty to forty tandems, besides pairs and singles. This old club has never entirely lapsed, and consists at present of the officers of the battery of artillery which garrisons the Citadel, and the wealthier shipping and lumber merchants.

The Montreal Tandem Club, as a distinct organization for the pastime of sleighing, was formed many years ago, during the occupancy of the Imperial troops. In those days it was a most fashionable and aristocratic assemblage, and usually mustered twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays. It was an inspiriting sight to watch the long stream of handsome equipages as they followed in line. Among those who handled the ribbons with skill and dexterity were the old, gray-haired hero of Kars, Lieutenant-General Sir Fenwick Williams, whose deep love of sport endeared him to the Canadian youth; Sir James Lindsay; Sir W. Windham, who earned the distinction of being the first to enter the famous Russian Redan in the Crimean war; Lord Paulet (the handsome guardsman); Lords Dunmore and Elphinstone; Major Penn, Colonel Bell, and many others whose names we cannot at present recall. Two should, however, not be forgotten—two whose names have since become well known the world over—Colonel Wolseley, now General Lord Wolseley, and Lieutenant Butler of the 60th Rifles, now General Sir Redvers Butler. Pleasant days they were, and as the long line of four-in-hands, unicorns, tandems and pairs filed past, filled with the happy and smiling faces of the Canadian belles and gallant officers, many of the latter little thought that in after-years, far from Canadian snows, they would find soldiers’ graves, and “sleep the sleep that knows no waking” in lands where such a thing as a snowflake was never dreamed of.

After the withdrawal of the British troops, the Tandem Club for a few years had a feeble existence; but in January,1882, principally through the exertions of some of the older members of the Montreal Hunt Club, it was reorganized. Mr. Joseph Hickson, the general manager of the Grand Trunk Railway was elected president, while in 1883 Mr. Andrew Allan, of the well-known Canadian Steamship Company, was the president—Mr. Joseph Hickson being again elected to the office in 1884. Every Saturday, at two o’clock, the club meets on Dominion Square, opposite the Windsor Hotel. A gay and pleasing sight it is to watch the smart “turn-outs” as they circle round the square before making a start for the selected destination. A favorite resort is Peloguin’s Hotel, at Sault-au-Recollect village, about seven miles from the city, on a northern branch of the Ottawa River. A six-mile trip eastward along the banks of the St. Lawrence, brings one to Longue Pointe, while westward a favorite road leads through the suburb of Côte St. Antoine, past the “Blue Bonnets,” to Lachine, about nine miles distant. Other favorite drives are to “The Kennels,” the headquarters of the Hunt Club, or round the winding, zigzag road to the park at the summit of picturesque Mt. Royal. The time spent at the rendezvous is usually about an hour, just enough for some light refreshments and perhaps a dance or two. Should the weather prove somewhat stormy and the sleighing heavy, a drive around town is the order of the day.

The Saturday meet always draws a crowd of citizens to watch and admire the handsome sleighs and horses. The cavalcade is steadily augmented by the new arrivals until the signal for starting is sounded from the coaching-horn of the leading four-in-hand. The four-in-hands always take the lead, followed by the unicorns, which rank next. Next come one or two randoms, and then follow a long line of tandems, then the pairs, the rear being brought up by another tandem, which acts as whipper-in.

Since the introduction of the Montreal winter carnivals, the sleigh parade, or “Carnival Drive,” has been one of the week’s events each year, and is a sight worth seeing. These drives are a commingling of all sorts and conditions of men, wealth and affluence in the private equipages of the wealthy merchants and members of the Tandem Club, and rural comfort and simplicity in the humble but substantial outfit of thehabitant. The athletic clubs turn outen massein huge sleighs of various shapes and designs, holding fifty to sixty uniformed members, and drawn by eight, six, and four horses. There are double and single sleighs, carioles, box-sleighs, light cutters, family sleighs,habitantsleighs, skeletons, sulkies, “haysleds,” Russian sleighs, and nondescripts on runners impossible to classify, but all lending their aid to make up a spectacle.

Besides the fashionable Tandem Club, Montreal has other driving associations. The contractors, who in most large cities are well off, have a driving club, and visit the neighboring villages during each winter. The Hackmen’s Association have turned out sleighs by the hundred at the carnival drives, and their costly and handsome outfits have been the admiration of all, many of the master carters having sleighs that equal in style and finish those of the wealthy merchants.

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